Would Have Been Arrested Had I Compared Namaz And Surya Namaskar, Says Azam Khan

Yogi Adityanath has said the two have many similarities.

NEW DELHI -- Senior Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Azam Khan on Thursday said he would have been arrested he had made such a comparison between Namaz and Surya Namaskar.

"Had I said what he (Yogi Adityanath) said, I would have been handcuffed by now," said Khan.

The Congress Party also condemned Yogi Adityanath for drawing a parallel between Namaz and Surya Namasker, saying that commenting on a religious issue is very personal.

Azam Khan's statement came a day after Adityanath drew parallels between Surya Namaskar and Namaz.

Adityanath, who had in the past lashed out at a section of Muslims for terming the practice of 'surya namaskar' as un-Islamic, said the salutation to the sun was a beautiful example of religious harmony.

"The namaz offered by Muslims resembles different postures and asanas of surya namaskar including pranayam. What a beautiful example of harmony (between two religions). But some 'bhogis' who do not believe in yoga, indulged in dividing the society on lines of caste, creed, religion and region among others," Aditynath said.

"All asanas (postures) in surya namaskar, pranayama activities are similar to the way Namaz is offered by our Muslim brothers. But nobody ever tried to bring them together because few people were interested only in 'bhoga' not yoga," Aditynath added.